1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sample analyzer analyzing a sample by using a reagent and a method of writing information on a recording medium attached to a reagent container.
2. Description of the Related Art
There has been known a sample analyzer which suctions a reagent from a reagent container, to which a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag storing reagent information is attached, and analyzes a sample by using the reagent. In U.S. Patent Publication No. 2010/0001854, there is a description of an analyzer which performs biochemical analysis by dispensing samples into reaction containers which are transported on a reaction table and by dispensing reagents corresponding to analysis items from a plurality of reagent containers accommodated in a reagent housing. The analyzer includes an RFID reader/writer which reads information from an RFID tag attached to a reagent container and writes information to the RFID tag. In the analyzer, information is read from the RFID tags of the reagent containers when the analyzer starts up, and it is determined whether a new reagent container is set in the analyzer based on the read information. If a new reagent container is set in the analyzer, the RFID reader/writer writes the time of initiating the usage of the reagent to the RFID tag of the reagent container.
There has been known a sample analyzer which analyzes a sample by a flow cytometry method. In the analyzer using the flow cytometry method, specimens for analysis are prepared from different reagents for each analysis item and are supplied to a flow cell. Accordingly, a fluid system supplying a specimen for analysis to the flow cell and a reagent set section for setting a reagent container used therefor are provided for each analysis item (for each analysis reagent), and thus it is necessary to confirm whether a reagent container set in the reagent set section is appropriate for the analysis item when the reagent container is newly set. The analyzer described in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2010/0001854 includes a reagent housing which has chambers for accommodating a plurality of reagent containers. In the analyzer, it is allowed to set a reagent container in any chamber and there is no technical necessity to confirm whether a reagent container containing a specific reagent is set in a specific chamber (reagent set section).